Philippe de Crèvecœur, seigneur d'Esquerdes (1418–1494), was a French military commander and a

Marshal of France Marshal of France (, plural ') is a French military distinction, rather than a military rank, that is awarded to General officer, generals for exceptional achievements. The title has been awarded since 1185, though briefly abolished (1793–1804) ...

in 1486. He is also known as ''Maréchal des Cordes'' or ''Maréchal d'Esquerdes''.

Biography

He was the son of

Jacques Jacques or Jacq are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over one hundred identified noble families related t ...

(† 1436), Lord of Crèvecœur and Thois, Captain of

Compiègne Compiègne (; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Oise Departments of France, department of northern France. It is located on the river Oise (river), Oise, and its inhabitants are called ''Compiégnois'' (). Administration Compiègne is t ...

, Governor of

Clermont-en-Beauvaisis Clermont () is a commune in the Oise department in northern France. Clermont-de-l'Oise station has rail connections to Amiens, Creil, and Paris. History Clermont was also known as Clermont-en-Beauvaisis or Clermont-de-l'Oise. The town is bui ...

and a Knight in the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece (, ) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in 1430 in Brugge by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy, Isabella of Portugal. T ...

. Philippe entered the service of

Charles the Bold Charles Martin (10 November 1433 – 5 January 1477), called the Bold, was the last duke of Burgundy from the House of Valois-Burgundy, ruling from 1467 to 1477. He was the only surviving legitimate son of Philip the Good and his third wife, ...

, Duke of Burgundy. He was governor of

Troyes Troyes () is a Communes of France, commune and the capital of the Departments of France, department of Aube in the Grand Est region of north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about south-east of Paris. Troyes is situated within ...

in 1463 and distinguished himself in 1465 at the

Battle of Montlhéry The Battle of Montlhéry was fought between Louis XI and the League of the Public Weal on 16 July 1465 in the vicinity of Longpont-sur-Orge. It had no clear winner and therefore did not decide the war. Insurgency of the Vassal countries Philip t ...

. In 1467, he fought in the Liège Wars against the

Prince-Bishopric of Liège The Prince-Bishopric of Liège or Principality of Liège was a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that was situated for the most part in present-day Belgium. It was an Imperial Estate, so the bishop of Liège, as ...

and was awarded the

. He was then governor of

Artois Artois ( , ; ; Picard: ''Artoé;'' English adjective: ''Artesian'') is a region of northern France. Its territory covers an area of about 4,000 km2 and it has a population of about one million. Its principal cities include Arras (Dutch: ...

and

Picardy Picardy (; Picard language, Picard and , , ) is a historical and cultural territory and a former regions of France, administrative region located in northern France. The first mentions of this province date back to the Middle Ages: it gained it ...

, where he defended

Abbeville Abbeville (; ; ) is a commune in the Somme department and in Hauts-de-France region in northern France. It is the of one of the arrondissements of Somme. Located on the river Somme, it was the capital of Ponthieu. Geography Location A ...

against

Louis XI Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revolt known as the ...

. In 1472, he conquered

Nesle Nesle () is a commune in the Somme department in Hauts-de-France in northern France. Geography Nesle is situated at the junction of the D930 and D337 roads, some southwest of Saint-Quentin. The Ingon, a small stream, passes through the commu ...

, but failed to take

Beauvais Beauvais ( , ; ) is a town and Communes of France, commune in northern France, and prefecture of the Oise Departments of France, département, in the Hauts-de-France Regions of France, region, north of Paris. The Communes of France, commune o ...

defended by

Jeanne Hachette Jeanne Laisné, also known as Jeanne Fourquet in the 16th century and better known as Jeanne Hachette, is an emblematic figure in the history of the French city of Beauvais's resistance to the siege laid by Charles the Bold, Charles the Bold, Duk ...

. When Charles the Bold was killed in 1477 without a male heir, Crèvecœur went over to serve King

Louis XI of France Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revolt known as the ...

, who claimed all the lands owned by Charles. Crèvecœur remained governor of

and also brought

under French rule, delivering Arras to the French Army. For this, he received the

Order of Saint Michael The Order of Saint Michael () is a French dynastic order of chivalry, founded by King Louis XI of France on 1 August 1469, in response to the Order of the Golden Fleece founded by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, Louis' chief competitor fo ...

. In the

Battle of Guinegate (1479) The First Battle of Guinegate took place on 7 August 1479. King Louis XI's French troops, led by Philippe de Crèvecœur d'Esquerdes (who had been a commander under Charles the Bold but defected to the French side after the latter's death in 147 ...

he was defeated by

Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death in 1519. He was never crowned by the Pope, as the journey to Rome was blocked by the Venetians. He proclaimed hi ...

. Nevertheless, he was made Marshal of France and Lieutenant-General of the King's army in Picardy in 1486. During the

Mad War The Mad War () was an Early Renaissance conflict between a coalition of feudal lords and the French monarchy. It occurred during the regency of Anne of Beaujeu in the period after the death of Louis XI and before the majority of Charles VIII. Th ...

, he was successful in stopping the attacks of the Imperial forces. He defeated

Adolph of Cleves, Lord of Ravenstein Adolph of Cleves, Lord of Ravenstein, Netherlands, Ravenstein (1425–1492) was the youngest son of Adolph I, Duke of Cleves, and of his wife Marie of Burgundy, Duchess of Cleves, Marie of Burgundy, a sister of Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy. ...

in 1486, and captured during the Battle of Béthune in 1487,

Charles II, Duke of Guelders Charles II (9 November 1467 – 30 June 1538) was a member of the House of Egmond who ruled as Duke of Guelders and Count of Zutphen from 1492 until his death. He had a principal role in the Frisian peasant rebellion and the Guelders Wars. Life ...

and

Engelbert II of Nassau Engelbert II of Nassau, ''Engelbrecht'' in Dutch (17 May 1451 – 31 May 1504), was count of Nassau and Vianden and lord of Breda, Lek, Diest, Roosendaal, Nispen and Wouw. He was a soldier and courtier, for some time leader of the Privy cou ...

. He also took

Saint-Omer Saint-Omer (; ; Picard: ''Saint-Onmé'') is a commune and sub-prefecture of the Pas-de-Calais department in France. It is west-northwest of Lille on the railway to Calais, and is located in the Artois province. The town is named after Sa ...

and

Thérouanne Thérouanne (; ; Dutch ''Terwaan'') is a commune in the Pas-de-Calais department in the Hauts-de-France region of France west of Aire-sur-la-Lys and south of Saint-Omer, on the river Lys. Population History At the time of the Gauls, ''T ...

. In 1492, he negotiated the Peace of Etaples with King

Henry VII of England Henry VII (28 January 1457 – 21 April 1509), also known as Henry Tudor, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from his seizure of the crown on 22 August 1485 until his death in 1509. He was the first monarch of the House of Tudor. Henr ...

. When

Charles VIII of France Charles VIII, called the Affable (; 30 June 1470 – 7 April 1498), was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. He succeeded his father Louis XI at the age of 13. His elder sister Anne acted as regent jointly with her husband Peter II, Du ...

prepared his Italian campaign in 1494, Crèvecœur was given the command of the vanguard, but he died on the 22nd of April at

L'Arbresle L'Arbresle () is a commune of the Rhône department, eastern France. Composer Claude Terrasse and inventor Barthélemy Thimonnier were born in L'Arbresle. Population See also * Communes of the Rhône department The following is a list o ...

near Lyon, before the start of the campaign. He had no children and was buried in the Notre-Dame church of

Boulogne-sur-Mer Boulogne-sur-Mer (; ; ; or ''Bononia''), often called just Boulogne (, ), is a coastal city in Hauts-de-France, Northern France. It is a Subprefectures in France, sub-prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Pas-de-Calais. Boul ...

Media

* He portrayed in

Sir Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European literature, European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'' (18 ...

's 1823 novel '' Quentin Durward'' as a wise counselor, attempting to avoid war between Charles the Bold and

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Crevecoeur Desquerdes, Philippe De Knights of the Golden Fleece Marshals of France 1418 births 1494 deaths